Let Them Take The Pictures
by Ferbnessa
Summary: Ferb hasn't seen Vanessa in person for five years. Now, he's a nineteen year old college student in New York and she's a world famous popstar. Somehow, they end up in a jail cell together. (Super short, based off a tumblr prompt meme)


When they were brought down to the police station, Ferb had expected Vanessa to be the calm one. His expectations in regards to her had been off base before though, and after thirty minutes of being in the cell together Vanessa hadn't stopped moving. She was drumming her fingers against the bars of the cell, pacing back and forth across the length of the room, or sitting down and putting her head in her hands.

"How are you not freaking out right now?" She asked him during one of her seated moments. Ferb just shrugged. He wasn't sure why he wasn't, but he also wasn't sure why he would be. Ferb wasn't a minor anymore, his parents wouldn't have to ever know, and Buford would be there to bail him out within the hour.

"Can I ask why you're so wound up about this?" He asked. "Not that I think it's irrational, because it's really not."

Vanessa sighed and leaned back against the wall. "I just really don't need this right now." She muttered, looking at him. "If anyone finds out, I'm going to be in deep shit."

"Oh yeah, you're kind of in the public eye now, right?" Ferb recalled. The night had been incredibly strange. Ferb hadn't seen Vanessa in five years. Of course, he'd started seeing her on television screens and magazine covers soon after, but this was the first time he'd seen her in person since she was nineteen. She had come back to Danville in the summer after her first year at college and they had hung out a few times before she disappeared from his life for good. Or at least, he'd thought it was for good. A lot had changed since then; Ferb wasn't the fifteen year old prodigy she'd said goodbye to and Vanessa wasn't the goth girl with the punk friends and the hipster boyfriend.

"Yeah." She said. "You know, I always thought you would be the celebrity."

"I'm trying to finish school first." He explained. Phineas and he had come up with ideas for many inventions they could go public on, but they both wanted to get a taste of the real world first. The distance put a damper on things too. It was Ferb's second year of college, his second year of being away in New York while Phineas went to school back in Danville.

"Oh gosh, do you think they know about it yet?" Vanessa groaned, putting her hands over her face. Ferb moved closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, it's not like you killed a man or anything." He assured her. She laughed.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Vanessa said.

"You'll get through this. We can walk out together if you need the support." Ferb told her. Realizing what it might have sounded like, he ducked his head down. "That sounded bad, didn't it."

"Don't worry about it, I know you're not trying to leech off my fame." Vanessa assured him. "And yeah, I think I'd like that." She added. "Of course, don't be surprised when some tabloid article comes out accusing me of having a new green haired boyfriend." When she said that, Ferb laughed. He meant for it to sound light, but it came out forced, lasting for far too long. It wasn't as if he had thought about Vanessa in the front of his mind for the past five years, but he never really got the chance to get over her. There was no closure, no 'I'm not coming back to Danville' message. She was just gone, and the word of her return had never come. The worst part was that soon after, everyone in the world got to enjoy her but him. He had felt what it was like to be in her presence, and no amount of interviews or music videos came close to it's greatness.

When he saw her at the beginning of the night it was by pure coincidence. He had been at a party of a friend of a friend's and she just happened to be there. For a moment he had been transported back in time to the blueprint shop, like he was seeing her for the first time again. She had matured, but she was also so much the same. The ache he felt in his stomach told him, to his horror, that he had never fallen out of love with Vanessa Doofenshmirtz.

"I'd be honored to be called your boyfriend by a tabloid." He joked. Vanessa laughed. "You know," Ferb ducked his head, "your songs are some of the best music on the radio." It was a bit random, but he wanted her to know how proud of her he was.

"You listen to them?" She asked.

"All the time." Ferb admitted. "You're really good."

"Thanks." Vanessa said, blushing slightly. "Hey, Ferb?"

"Yeah?" He asked.

"It was really good to see you again." Vanessa said.

"Yeah, I missed you." Ferb told her. There was a moment of silence that grew so thick that Ferb almost thought the last few years of being away from her were going to spill out onto the floor in front of them. The door opened, interrupting the air, and the police officer let them out. Buford stood in the waiting room, and he got up when Ferb entered.

"Hey, what's with all the people outside?" He asked. Ferb pointed to where Vanessa stood behind him. Buford's eyes widened and he raised an eyebrow at Ferb, who mouthed an 'I'll tell you later' at him and looked back at Vanessa.

"Do you still want me to walk you out to your car?" He asked. Vanessa nodded.

"Mhm, and I might as well just take you home." She said. "If that's alright with you."

"Yeah, if Buford doesn't mind driving back alone." Ferb said. Buford rolled his eyes at Ferb.

"Only because I owe you." He whispered.

"Alright then," Ferb turned to Vanessa, "ready to face the world?"

"I guess." Vanessa sighed. She walked side by side with him down the hallway and out the door. As they left, the cameras began clicking and lights began flashing. Somewhere in the midst of all of it, Vanessa slipped her hand into Ferb's. As they walked down the street, all Ferb could think about was how the next day there would surely be photos spread across the internet of him blushing like an idiot. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.


End file.
